Brisbane Roar 1 Perth Glory 0: Henrique nets winner on return

Brisbane Roar moved two points clear at the top of the A-League with a 1-0 win over Perth Glory at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday.

Second-half substitute Henrique scored on his first appearance since March after recovering from a serious knee injury.

The 74th-minute goal lifted the Roar into top spot after their fourth win in six games, while the Glory stay second-bottom.

Brisbane were good value for their win, having dominated the first half without finding a breakthrough.

But Henrique delivered after being introduced and John Aloisi’s side kept their third straight clean sheet.

The lively Dimitri Petratos went close for the Roar in the 26th minute as his curling 25-yard effort hit the outside of the post with Ante Covic unmoved.

Just three minutes later and Petratos missed another huge chance, skying an effort well over.

On the stroke of half-time, the Glory almost took an undeserved lead.

Guyon Fernandez picked out Marc Warren at the back post, but his first touch let him down and the chance went begging.

Richard Garcia had the chance to open the scoring after the interval but his angle to goal narrowed after rounding Jamie Young following a defensive error.

Michael Thwaite blasted over from long range and then tested the reflexes of Young moments after as the visitors threatened.

Henrique came off the bench to score in the 74th minute, darting between the Glory defence to clip fellow substitute Javier Hervas’ pass over Covic.

The Brazilian cried with joy after netting his first goal in eight months following a full knee reconstruction surgery.

The Roar looked in control after taking the lead and almost doubled their advantage with two minutes to play as Petratos struck the woodwork for the second time with a thunderous drive.